History

Aircraft By Type

Aircraft Make & Model:
Convair 880
MTOW:
92 tons
Range:
2,600 miles
Speed:
586 mph
Seats:
84 passengers (all first class)
Length:
129 ft.
Wingspan:
120 ft.
Height:
36 ft.
Engines:
4 General Electric CJ-805-3B
HP or Thrust:
11,200 hp
No. flown by DL:
17
RoutesFlown:
Initial routes: New York-Atlanta/New Orleans/Houston; later other medium-haul routes
Advantages:
Drawbacks:
First Delivery:
February 10, 1960
First Scheduled Service:
May 15, 1960, world's first Convair 880 service (Houston-New York City)
Reason Aquired:
Fastest subsonic commercial jet.
Last Retirement:
January 1974
Reason Disposed:
Narrow, short fuselage for fast flight speeds limited the number of passengers; high fuel costs

Narrative:  Convair 880 1960-1973

Delivery
Miss San Diego Leona McCurdy christened Delta's first Convair 880 named "Delta Queen," with a bottle of water from various rivers throughout the Delta system.  

On February 10, 1960, Delta's first Convair 880 sets a new commercial speed record during its delivery flight between San Diego, California, and Miami, Florida, (3 hours, 31 minutes, 54 seconds).

Initial Service
Delta launched the world's first Convair 880 service on May 15, 1960, between Houston and New York City. Initial service was to Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans, each city served nonstop from New York-Idlewild (now JFK airport). In December 1965, Delta Convairs first flew outside the U.S. to Caracas, Venezuela, and Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Retirement
Delta's Convair 880s were sold to The Boeing Aircraft Company from November 1973 to January 1974.

More Information

Pictures
  • Convair 880 lounge 1960
  • convair_880_christening
Videos
  • Delta Convair CV-880 Promo Film -1960